ROANOKE, Va. -- A strange brew of trickery, retribution and pure squared-circle aggression consumed SmackDown, just nine days before The Bash unleashes itself upon the WWE Universe (Full coverage). 

Jeff Hardy def. Intercontinental Champion Chris Jericho (count-out) (VIDEO | PHOTOS)
Prior to his match with Chris Jericho, The Charismatic No. 1 Contender was confronted by World Heavyweight Champion CM Punk about their World Championship Match at The Bash (Match preview). Punk voiced no regrets about cashing in his Money in the Bank opportunity at Extreme Rules, nor with his actions in Monday Night Raw's Triple Threat Match. An intense Hardy expressed his determination to take his title back at the upcoming pay-per-view. (PHOTOS)

Hardy's attention then turned to Jericho. In the culmination of their heated battle, as the nine-time Intercontinental Champion was throwing Hardy back into the ring, Rey Mysterio suddenly emerged from a seat in the crowd. He attacked Jericho, driving the stunned Superstar into the ring post before returning to his seat next to two other identically dressed fans. This surprise onslaught led directly to a Hardy victory when Jericho couldn't answer the 10-count. After the bell, The Charismatic Enigma put the exclamation point on the win, hitting the disoriented Jericho with the Twist of Fate and Swanton Bomb combination.

World Heavyweight Champion CM Punk def. Rey Mysterio (VIDEO | PHOTOS)
Later, Mysterio accepted the challenge from the reemerging Jericho to put his sacred mask on the line against Jericho's gold at The Bash (Match preview) (PHOTOS). The nine-time Intercontinental Champion then joined Hall of Famer Jim Ross & Todd Grisham at the broadcast table. But in a critical moment of Mysterio's match with Punk, Jericho "evened the score" for his masked adversary's earlier attack, slamming The Master of the 619 into the steel ring post. Though Mysterio answered his 10-count, the World Champion quickly finished him off with the GTS.

After the bell, an angry Jeff Hardy charged into the ring to dispute the decision. He was clearly still seething after being stripped of the World Heavyweight Championship at Extreme Rules. But the confrontation only ended in a staredown, with Punk still walking off with the victory over Mysterio. At The Bash, things will finally come to a head when Punk and Hardy collide in a rematch. (Match preview)

Edge def. John Morrison (VIDEO | PHOTOS)
The Friday Night Delight may have matched The Master Manipulator in a war of words before the bell, but The Rated-R Superstar ultimately reigned supreme, hitting the spear in the climax of their tremendously hard-fought battle. Morrison heroically fought through injured ribs, but couldn't stop the former World Champion at the finish line. 

Dolph Ziggler def. The Great Khali (disqualification) (PHOTOS)
While the referee was distracted, the incomparable Ziggler threw a chair toward The Great Khali before falling to the canvas as if injured. When the referee turned around, The Punjabi Playboy was holding the steel and was therefore disqualified. Once again, Ziggler appears to have outsmarted Khali, giving himself another victory over his irate adversary. 

Melina def. Alicia Fox (VIDEO | PHOTOS)
Melina reigned supreme over "A-Fox," flipping herself downward off Alicia's back and using her momentum to whip Alicia over for the pinfall. Michelle then attacked, hurling the Women's Champion from the ring before viciously kneeing her into the broadcaster's table. The No. 1 contender promised to humiliate Melina at The Bash (Match preview) and become the first Diva to hold both the Divas and Women's Championships.

R-Truth & Cryme Tyme def. Ricky Ortiz, Charlie Haas & Shelton Benjamin (PHOTOS)
Amidst mass confusion both in and outside the ring in a six-man brawl, R-Truth caught Benjamin with a powerful kick as The Gold Standard was leaping from the top rope. Truth followed up with the hurricane-like Corkscrew Elbow to prove triumphant.